s the populations of
medieval towns and cities increased, hygienic conditions
worsened, leading to a vast array of health problems.
Medical knowledge was limited and, despite the efforts of
medical practitioners and public and religious
institutions to institute regulations, medieval Europe
did not have an adequate health care system. Antibiotics
weren't invented until the 1800s and it was almost
impossible to cure diseases without them.

There were many myths and superstitions
about health and hygiene as there still are today. People
believed, for example, that disease was spread by bad
odors. It was also assumed that diseases of the body
resulted from sins of the soul. Many people sought relief
from their ills through meditation, prayer, pilgrimages,
and other nonmedical methods.

The body was viewed as a part of the universe, a
concept derived from the Greeks and Romans. Four humors,
or body fliuds, were directly related to the four
elements: fire=yellow bile or choler; water=phlegm;
earth=black bile; air=blood. These four humors had to be
balanced. Too much of one was thought to cause a change
in personality--for example, too much black bile could
create melancholy.